Contents

December 31

One of France's most iconic institutions — the smoky cafe — will be but a hazy memory.

The extension of France's smoking ban to bars, discotheques, restaurants, hotels, casinos and cafes on Jan. 1 marks a momentous cultural shift in a country where thinkers like Jean Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir once held court while clutching cigarettes in Left Bank cafes. [1]

"Homeschoolers are the most dedicated, sincere, and committed people in the world." "Homeschoolers have a long and impressive record; yet in recent years, they have been persecuted and prosecuted instead of praised and promoted." [2]

Green Bay has removed its nativity scene, but a "freedom from religion" group insists on suing anyway. Why? Because it will demand reimbursement of its legal fees to censor religion at taxpayer expense under a federal law. [3]

Welcome to world government: The "WTO Awards Caribbean Country Right to Ignore US Copyright." Why? As a bizarre form of "punishment" for a congressional ban on internetgambling. Many innocent companies are victimized by this WTO ruling, which cannot be overturned by American courts. [4]

Government at work: Boston's just-completed "Big Dig" construction cost $14.8 billion rather than the estimated $2.6 billion, and had "tunnel leaks, epic traffic jams, last year's death of a motorist crushed by falling concrete panels" and other problems. [10]

December 29

"You can find Santa at every mall. You can find discounts in every store," presidential candidate Mike Huckabee said Sunday in church. "But if you mention the name of Jesus, as I found out recently, it upsets the whole world. Forgive me, but I thought that was the point of the whole day." [12]

"An angel of the Lord appeared to shepherds, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.'" Luke 2:9-12 (NIV)

Update: SWOSU reverses itself, allows celebration of Christmas after all--this after a raft of e-mails and some well-placed communications from Liberty Counsel. Now the President of SWOSU is passing the buck--downward. WorldNetDaily.[15]

A Merry Christmas means a Family Christmas... the joy of celebrating the coming of the Christ Child with family and friends. [16]

December 24

Actor-politician Fred Thompson is making an eleventh-hour push to convince Iowa voters he is the only real conservative in the presidential race, contrasting his ideas and record on immigration and abortion with those of his leading rivals. [23]

Leftists want to remove the word Christmas from all walks of life, even if it means creating a lie that the Oklahoma Attorney General wanted the word unmentionable. “The folks at the Liberty Counsel will find lumps of coal in their stockings on Christmas morning,” Oklahoma A.G. Drew Edmondson said. “That’s what Santa leaves for bad kids who tell lies.” [26].

But while the Oklahoma A.G. is blaming Liberty Counsel for it, Liberty Counsel, an organization advocating religious liberty, is indicating [27] that it may have originated with Southwestern Oklahoma State University: [28][29]

And the free-fall continues: Rudy Giuliani is now in fourth place nationally for the Republican Presidential nomination, with only 13% support, according to the latest Rasmussen poll.
[31]

Woman flees her home in the dark of night, leaving most of her possessions behind, just to get out of a rogue judge's jurisdiction and retain her right of homeschooling. This while the outrage against the judge has reached even into the halls of Utah's legislature. WorldNetDaily.[32]

December 22

Pro-abortionRudy Giuliani continues to fall in the polls. The former Republican front-runner is now merely tied for a distant second, and just four points ahead of fifth place. [38]

And then there were seven: U.S. Representative Tom Tancredo expected to drop Presidential bid Thursday.
[39]

The Democratic-controlled House is expected to give President Bush an end-of-session victory in his yearlong battle with anti-war lawmakers over Iraq by approving $70 billion for U.S. military operations there and in Afghanistan. [40]

Time magazine on Wednesday named Russian President Vladimir Putin its 2007 "Person of the Year." [41]

Jimmy Wales assures donors he personally will make up loss if any money was stolen [45] after ex-con and Chief Operating Officer of the Wikimedia Foundation was quietly eased out of the position. The former COO, who was convicted of check fraud, was in charge of the Foundation's check book. The Wikimedia Foundation's audited financial statement has been delayed since shortly after her arrest on other charges upon returning from a Wikimedia Foundation Board meeting in Amsterdam. Wikipedia's Donor Drive continues however.

Attempting to Stop Global Warming is Futile and a Mistake, says letter to the UN[46]
The letter argues against the existence of consensus and rejects claims of abnormal climate change.

In a dramatic finish to a U.N. climate conference, world leaders adopted a plan Saturday for negotiating a new global warming pact by 2009, after the United States backed down in a battle over wording supported by developing nations and Europe. [48]

December 19

China arrests authorized Christian book seller simply for holding services. Read more hereThe persecution of those who carry a Bible in China is what happens when an officially-atheist government is in control: [50]

Former Chief Operating Officer of Wikimedia Foundation is a convicted felon with a criminal record in at least four states.

Two convictions for check fraud and petty larceny, a hit and run car accident which killed one, four DUI's, and a guilty plea for shooting an ex-boyfriend. WikiNews

"For more than six months, beginning in January of this year, Wikipedia's million-dollar check book was balanced by a convicted felon." The Register.

The gunman who shot up a Christian missions HQ and then a church in Colorado boasted of following occultist Aleister Crowley, who during his life was called "the wickedest man in the world." WorldNetDaily. [51]

Stop "trolling" on behalf of atheists, the unanimous Eighth Circuit declared! Ruling in favor of a Christian prison fellowship, the Court held that an "inquiry into an organization's religious views to determine if it is pervasively sectarian 'is not only unnecessary but also offensive. It is well established, in numerous other contexts, that courts should refrain from trolling through a person's or institution's religious beliefs.'" [53]

The mother's physician recommended an abortion. A Christian missionary, the mother refused the abortion. Last weekend the child, Tim Tebow, became the first sophomore ever to win the Heisman Trophy as the top college football player in the U.S.[61]

December 15

A worshipper used her own gun to stop a Christian-hater from killing over a hundred people Sunday at a Colorado church. Jeanne Assam, who shot the killer once he entered the church, said, "I give the credit to God. And I say that very humbly. God was with me and the whole time I was behind cover -- this has got to be God, because of the firepower that [the gunman] had vs. what I had -- was God. I did not run away and I didn't think for a minute to run away, I just knew that I was given the assignment to end this before it got too much worse. I just prayed for the Holy Spirit to guide me." [64]

Alberto Fujimori, 69, faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted. It is the first time a Peruvian ex-head of state has been tried for actions carried out while he was in office. [65]

Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution to Bible-accepting scientist: believe in evolution as fact or get fired! [66]

Republican candidates pledged to crack down on illegal immigration during a debate Sunday before a largely Hispanic audience, but avoided confronting each other over who is tougher on the issue. USA TODAY

President Vladimir Putin’s endorsement of one of his closest confidantes, Dmitri A. Medvedev, makes him the favorite to become Russia’s next president. [67]

December 13

Most African leaders have rejected European Union proposals for a free-trade deal that would replace colonial-era trading systems, Senegal's president said Sunday at a summit marred by disputes over Zimbabwe and Darfur. [68]

Teachers are not required to be vaccinated, but New Jersey is about to add 4 more mandatory, often mercury-containing vaccines for schoolchildren, increasing the total above 30: "They're really being treated as guinea pigs, and not all children can handle all vaccines," said Assemblywoman Charlotte Vandervalk, R-Bergen. [72] Only homeschooling escapes the harm from this, which may include autism.

Specialty (toys) shops are gearing up for particularly cautious shoppers, with some stores even providing lead-testing services. More than 65 percent of consumers say the recalls will affect their holiday shopping, and nearly one-quarter say they will refuse to buy toys from China. [73]

Slimy, green and unsightly, seaweed and algae are among the humblest plants on earth. A group of scientists at a climate conference in Bali say they could also be a potent weapon against global warming, capable of sucking damaging carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere at rates comparable to the mightiest rain forests. [74]

December 11

"Obviously, there's something seriously wrong with the way Wikipedia is being managed and administered. I don't know if it threatens the long-term viability of the project or not, but it is cause for concern ...." [75]And then there is Wikipedia's "secret mailing list." [76]

Pope Benedict XVI has released his second encyclical, Spe Salvi Facti Sumus (On Christian Hope), continuing his emphasis on the basic truths of the Christian life, and immediately raising expectations that it was the second installment of a trilogy on the theological virtues of faith, hope and love. US CATHOLIC NEWS

Robert Hawkins, teenage killer of 8

A product of the public schools, the teenaged killer of 8 in the Omaha mall had "normal" public school activities and beliefs: drugs, alcohol, and no reason (such as faith) to think his life was special. [78][79]

Beijing has been moving aggressively in recent months to complete a six-month long campaign to root out fake and substandard food, drugs, toys and other consumer goods, after a year of scandals involving product safety. [80]

Liberal ideas cause more harm: sexual diseases "rose again in the United States in 2006, the second year in a row." "This is a hidden epidemic," said CDC expert Dr. Stuart Berman. [81]

Standing on stage at a Republican debate in Florida last week, Mitt Romney lashed out at rival Rudy Giuliani for providing sanctuary to illegal immigrants in New York City. Yet, the next morning, on Thursday, at least two illegal immigrants stepped out of a hulking maroon pickup truck in the driveway of Romney's Belmont house. The Boston Globe.

Wikipedia's donations have dropped below 400 per day. Who gives money to an asylum overrun by liberal inmates???

Moderate Arabs Finally Speaking Out...in Europe! A large number of Arabic residents of Europe, most of whom seem to be Iraqi expatriates, are petitioning to stop Al-Jazeera from broadcasting in Europe. Their complaint: that Al-Jazeera fosters extremism and promotes terrorism. What do their apologists have to say now? Middle East Media Research Institute. [82]

If Hillary's campaign collapses, then will Al Gore accept the Nobel Prize on Dec. 10th and announce that he is considering running for president on Dec. 11th? In October, after the Prize was announced, nearly 50% felt Gore would run. [87]

Is John McCain making his move? He just won the huge endorsement of the main New Hampshire newspaper. [88] Even we're starting to feel guilty that McCain has struggled so much!

Bombshell expose: "Giuliani's business contracts tie him to the man who let 9/11's mastermind escape the FBI." [89]

Before Wednesday night's CNN-YouTube debate, CNN claimed that "this would be a Republican debate, and the goal was to let Republican voters see their candidates". So why did they use a question submitted by a member of Hillary Clinton's election committee? [96]

Fossilized soft tissue and skin of a dinosaur tend to disprove the Old Earth view of fossilization, but liberal publications won't admit it. [101] Learn the truth in our discussion here.

Study shows that young chimps have better numerical memory than liberal university students! [102]

Less values, more crime at college. "People on campus almost tolerate (crime) because there seem to be so many incidents" at the University of Cincinnati.[103] At Ivy LeagueUniversity of Pennsylvania, a Wharton junior was arrested for allegedly stealing from 10 different dorm rooms in five days. [104]

Hugo Chavez pushes socialism, pushed constitutional reforms that would make him dictator for life, expected the people to vote for it while calling those who wouldn't traitors...and now he has to take NO for an answer: [105][106]

President Hugo Chavez would take on expanded powers and no longer face term limits under sweeping constitutional changes being considered by Venezuelans Sunday in a contentious vote that has raised tensions in South America's top oil exporter. [107]

Tens of thousands of President Hugo Chavez's supporters filled the streets Friday vowing to win a vote on constitutional changes that would let the firebrand leftist seek re-election for years to come (as dictator). Opponents called for close monitoring of results in what they expect could be a tight contest. [108]

A documentary about Mexico last year’s disputed presidential election has drawn big crowds and generated controversy, after its director, Luis Mandoki, waged a long battle to find a distributor willing to take on a politically charged film. [109]

"THOUSANDS of Sudanese protesters carrying knives and sticks took to the streets of Khartoum today to call for the execution of British teacher Gillian Gibbons." [117]Currently she is in jail merely for allowing her students to name a teddy bear after a student's name, which was the same as the founder of Islam, a religion that forbids physical manifestations of its founder. She "was found guilty of insulting religion and inciting hatred."
Americanfeminists refuse to defend the woman teacher. [118]